Bad light and persistent rain brought an early halt to Day 1 of the 1st Test between India and South Africa, with the visitors clinging on at 208/8 on a challenging SuperSport Park surface on December 26, 2023.
Rahul Leads the Fight: Skipper Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill fell cheaply, but KL Rahul anchored the innings with a solid 70*, displaying patience and resilience against a bowling attack led by Marco Jansen (1/52). Virat Kohli (38) and Shreyas Iyer (26) offered brief resistance, but wickets kept tumbling at regular intervals.
Jansen Impresses: The tall left-arm quick Jansen impressed on his home turf, extracting bounce and swing to trouble the Indian batsmen. Kagiso Rabada (1/32) and Lungi Ngidi (1/34) chipped in with wickets as well, keeping the Indian batters in check.
Weather Takes Center Stage: With rain starting to drizzle late in the afternoon, the players left the field briefly due to fading light. However, the downpour intensified just as the covers were about to be deployed, leaving the ground sodden and raising concerns about further play.
What’s Next?: The rain, unfortunately, shows no signs of stopping, and the umpires are set to inspect the ground early tomorrow morning. With a significant portion of Day 1 already lost, the remainder of the match could be heavily impacted by the weather.
Ind v SA tv channels and live streaming
Here is a list of the official broadcasters and online services for different regions.
- India: Star Sports network will telecast the series live in India, along with its regional channels in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Bangla. The matches will also be streamed live on Disney+ Hotstar app and website.
- South Africa: SuperSport will be the exclusive tv partner for the series in South Africa and other sub-Saharan African countries. The matches will also be available on SuperSport’s digital platforms.
- UK and Ireland: Sky Sports Cricket will broadcast the series live in the UK and Ireland. The matches will also be streamed live on Sky Go app and website.
- USA and Canada: Willow TV will provide live coverage of the series in the USA and Canada. The matches will also be streamed live on Willow TV’s app and website.
- Australia: Fox Sports will telecast the series live in Australia. The matches will also be streamed live on Kayo Sports app and website.
- New Zealand: Spark Sport will broadcast the series live in New Zealand. The matches will also be streamed live on Spark Sport’s app and website.
- Middle East and North Africa: OSN Sports Cricket HD will provide live coverage of the series in the Middle East and North Africa. The matches will also be streamed live on OSN Play app and website.
- Southeast Asia: Fox Sports Asia will telecast the series live in Southeast Asia, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Brunei and Timor-Leste. The matches will also be streamed live on Fox Sports Asia’s app and website.
